Working lunch

A quietly useful summit between two fractious neighbours

MINT and melon soup, kebabs and blueberry mousse graced the prime minister's lunch table in Delhi on April 8th. Two lame ducks were also there. Manmohan Singh, India's leader, is said to dream of a peace deal with Pakistan before he retires, but his authority and energy are waning. Asif Ali Zardari, his Pakistani guest, should become the first civilian to finish a full presidential term, but he is unlikely to be around after polls early next year.

This first visit by a Pakistani president since 2005 was a low-key affair. It was billed as private—for appearances, Mr Zardari popped to a shrine, dishing out a $1m donation. That fits a pattern. A year ago Yousaf Raza Gilani, Pakistan's prime minister, came to watch a game of cricket with Mr Singh. Quiet meetings of leaders with not much to lose may be just what a budding India-Pakistan relationship needs. Avoiding rancour from domestic spoilers (army or terrorists in Pakistan, Hindu nationalists in India) is an achievement.

Mr Singh says he might possibly go to Pakistan, if something serious is agreed upon. Most likely that means demarcating a disputed strip of water by the Arabian Sea or pulling soldiers from Siachen glacier, where an avalanche this week killed nearly 140 Pakistanis, mostly soldiers. A deal on Kashmir's disputed status is unlikely, as is a change in Pakistan's handling of terrorist suspects. But other things could nudge matters forward.

Pakistan's sour relations with America, and its anxiety over Afghanistan, may prove a blessing for India. It means Pakistan's army is keener for calm on its eastern border, which could explain peace in Kashmir for over a year. As a reminder of America's shifting stance on Pakistan, the State Department announced, on the eve of Mr Zardari's visit, a $10m bounty for the arrest of a Pakistani radical, Hafiz Saeed, founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terrorist group alleged to have links with Pakistan's intelligence service. That pleased India, which blames him for the terror attacks in Mumbai in 2008—though Mr Saeed promptly thumbed his nose at his pursuers in a press conference in Rawalpindi.

Next, Pakistan's dire economy (and a wobble in India's) could prod efforts to lift wretchedly low bilateral trade. Called the “China option”, the idea is to emulate India's workmanlike relations with its bigger neighbour, in which better economic relations (Indian trade with China is now worth $75 billion a year) increasingly trump unresolved political and border disputes. Pushing India-Pakistan trade up from $3 billion now to $15 billion in a few years' time, once barriers are dismantled, would help. After that, Pakistan wants flows of tourists, traders and cricket players. India seeks a land route to Central Asia.

It might help that the dominant political dynasties of the two countries get on. Mr Zardari brought along his 23-year-old son, Bilawal Zardari Bhutto, chairman of his Pakistan Peoples Party, who is being groomed for a more active political role. He looks confident and has shown a readiness to defy Pakistan's army. He sat beside 41-year-old Rahul Gandhi, whose political clout in India could grow thanks to his mother, Sonia Gandhi, the head of Congress. A friendship would be helpful for future bilateral ties. Of the two, the younger Bhutto proved the better communicator. Throughout his brief India trip, he tweeted excitedly on senseless spending on weapons, the evils of nuclear conflict and, graciously, on his “lovely” meal.